


Four Shores

by m0thsphynx (s_p4rkss), s_p4rkss



Category: Original Work
Genre: Action/Adventure, Fantasy, Gen, LGBTQ Character, Multi, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Original Universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-13 09:07:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28775808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/s_p4rkss/pseuds/m0thsphynx, https://archiveofourown.org/users/s_p4rkss/pseuds/s_p4rkss
Summary: Young prince Oakley deals with his father's disapereance in a... peculiar... way. escaping his home and the kingdom he's supposed to rule over one day in hopes of delaying the destiny Fate has set upon him. Adventure, friendships and disapointments await this young prince in his journey, as well as uncovering secrets about his family.
Relationships: Original Character & Original Character
Kudos: 2





	1. Prologue

The early morning dew was shaken off the woodland undergrowth as the thundering of hooves woke the forest. The gentle summer breeze felt like a hurricane against Oakley's face as he galloped further into the forest, his breathing merged with his mount’s heavy pants, it’s powerful legs thudding on the mossy ground with each stride.

exhaustion and hunger plagued Oakley’s body, his arms felt weak and his legs were sore from the days of riding away from his old home, his bright icy-blue eyes dulled from the weariness from the ride and his messy black hair was tangled and tousled from the debris that got stuck in it.  
As the hours went by, he felt sorry for his mount. It had spent galloping through the country with no rest for more time than necessary “We’re almost there gal, just a little further” he whispered into his mount’s ear as he bent down to stroke it’s brown furred neck _“just a bit further”_ he thought, the poor caribou shouldn't have to endure so much time galloping… but he kept on going forward, deeper and deeper into the forest as the sun went down into the horizon.

“Just a few more feet, and you’ll rest as long as you want” Oakley whispered again, he felt the caribou’s legs tremble and it’s breath falter with every stride. His hopes of reaching a town by sunset lowered with every inch of the forest he rode through, and with every inch he didn't see the flickering of a torch’s flame at a small town’s gates.  
Oakley’s eyes fluttered as the sun set, he felt his head droop with exhaustion as the moon’s rays hit the forest canopy, and reflected on the puddles of the mossy woodland ground.

further ahead, Oakley saw the distant flicker of a flame, bright under the crescent moon’s light. His eyes lit up with hope as the little yellow light grew bigger the closer he rode towards it. Oakley felt at peace knowing there was a town ahead, he closed his eyes and let the tiredness he was feeling take over his body. his arms and legs went limp on his mount’s bag, and he rested his head on it’s strong neck. _“just a bit further, and it’ll all be over”_ he thought as his still body thudded onto the cobblestone path just ahead, at the entrance of a small woodland town. 

as his consciousness left his body, Oakley could hear the muffled voices of townspeople coming closer to his body, and the distant shouts for a medic. He could only see the blurred shapes of the townspeople’s legs, and his caribou’s body beside him on the paved floor. “we’re fine now” he thought, closing his eyes for a second time, and letting sleep crash on him like a black wave.


	2. Leave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oakley explores the town of Ensa after his arrival in search for his mount and a way to leave for another town.

Gentle chirping woke Oakley up from his peaceful slumber. The summer sun’s warm rays shone through the room’s window on the opposite wall and hit Oakley’s back,soothing him from the cold night he’s slept through.    
Oakley turned over on the bed and faced the room’s ceiling, he felt his dark silky hair fall on his shoulders as he sat up to look around the place he had slept in.    
He was in a medium sized room with a tall, wooden framed ceiling and cream colored walls that had darkened with time. on the wall opposite to him was the window where the sunlight was coming from, and under that was a small dark-wood desk with delicate carved accents on the legs and borders; on the desk there were 3 bundles of clothes neatly folded and stacked, next to it hung lay his light blue cloak, its furred trim sparkling under the soft sunlight.    
  


Oakley felt relieved as he laid his head on the soft pillows again, his mind clear and worry-free. He was finally out of Arajear’s capital, and ready to head towards the answer to his problems. Just as he closed his eyes to sleep a little more, letting the sun warm his bare back as he drifted away to sleep, and as he let his mind wander he remembered… Tally!    
He shot up from the bed and rushed towards the desk where his clothes were stacked, he quickly changed back into the clothes he wore the day he arrived and grabbed his fur trimmed cloak from the hook it had been hanged on, he tied back his hair in a low ponytail and rushed towards the room’s door, hoping that Tally was safe or just alive outside the town gates.    
  
Oakley’s footsteps echoed through the dark, narrow hallway of the inn. He fussed with his cloak and the brooch that held the two ends together; it was covered by the fur it’s trim, the clasps got twisted and tangled as he tried to fasten them together. He let out a defeated sigh and gave up on trying to fasten the cloak with the brooch, so he just draped it on his shoulders like a feather boa with the cream colored fur pinned under his right arm ,ruffling and tangling it in the process, to keep it in place as he walked down the inn’s wooden stairs. 

The inn’s first floor was rather empty, with the only patrons in the inn at that hour were the guests that had stayed for a night or two, the bartender’s attending to their business and the innkeeper watching over the employees and patrons present    
Oakley walked over the innkeeper, he was a sturdy looking dwarf with a bushy red beard, and a bright smile that welcomed everyone that talked to him. Oakley took a deep breath, and mustered up the courage to talk to the innkeeper, he gulped and asked   
“Hey.. Ah-Good morning.. i-is there any news of a caribou that had arrived recently? It would have probably arrived around one or two days ago i-i really don’t know-”   
Oakley stopped himself before he could start rambling about what had happened, he didn’t want to bother the innkeeper as he probably had lots of work to do and many guests to attend to.    
Oakley’s anxious thoughts died down as he heard the innkeeper’s chipper voice welcoming him in “Well, we did check ya in a day ago but we got no news of a caribou coming with ya lad, there is a stable here in the town, just past the gates. you could try and look for yer mount there”   
Oakley smiled and thanked the innkeeper, he reached for a small pouch hanging on his belt where he kept his money and gave 2 gold coins to the dwarf. He walked over to the heavy wooden door and opened it, letting the sunlight rush inside the dark interior of the inn’s bar.   
  
Oakley walked along the paved streets of the town, listening to the click of his boots on the cobblestone and the whistling of the summer breeze as he looked for the stables.    
Along the paved streets there were stores, homes and the occasional tavern, each one with it’s own flair and history to it; there were small red banners lining the store entrances, and bustling families heading towards the town’s marketplace to shop for the week’s meals.    
the energy of the town that morning reminded Oakley of his home, a sprawling city filled with life. his eyes clouded with small tears as he let his mind travel back to his home in the mountains which was similar but not the same as the small town he was in. 

Oakley continued walking down the cobblestoned streets of the town, fidgeting with his paws as the vendors called out from the different stalls, offering all kinds of products and services to anyone that would listen for their calls.    
He stopped looking as he arrived at a drab looking building that smelled of hay and dung, a metal plate swung in front of the building’s door that read “Ensa Stables- Equines, Mounts and Veterinary care”    
  
Oakley figured this was the place he was looking for that morning, he mustered up the courage to knock on the heavy wooden door, and ask the stablehands for his mount.   
He lightly tapped on the wooden surface on the door and waited for someone to open it, he bounced on his heels as he stood there, looking lost and confused as he waited at the door.   
He was beginning to lose hope as he remembered, _ “this is a public building, I’m supposed to enter without knocking”  _   
  
Oakley pushed the iron framed door open, and entered the building where he hoped his mount might be.   
He looked around the place’s light wood walls, and the tall windows scattered around on the right side of the building, He walked over to a dark stone table where one of the handlers was arranging paperwork from customers and cases that had been handled recently in the clinic. their long light blond hair was tied in a high ponytail so it wouldn’t get in their face as they worked around in the stables, as well as revealing long ,elongated ears belonging to elves and fey. They looked over at Oakley and smiled, “Welcome to Ensa Stables, how may we be of service today” they asked, as Oakley looked around the room a bit more    
“I-I was wondering if a female caribou was registered here a few days ago? Or if you knew where it was taken if she’s not here? Her name’s Tally, she's about 2 or 3 years old”    
Oakley replied to the stablehand’s question, tapping his fingers on the table trying to calm himself down. He kept thinking about what could’ve happened if Tally wasn’t there, did she die? Was she stolen from him when he arrived? Was he too late?   
His worries withered out as he heard the stablehand flip through some paperwork and reply   
“We did receive a wounded caribou a few days ago, you also seem to fit the rider’s description… let me get you sorted and see what I can tell you, follow me”   
  
The stablehand walked from behind the stone counter and further back into the building, wearing loose pants and a pale blue shirt covered by a dark brown leather apron where some gloves and different tools were stored in its pockets. The tall elf showed Oakley towards the stables where different mounts were being kept for their riders or for health checkups, from regular horses to gigantic beasts peacefully resting on the woodchip and hay lined floor.    
  


Further back in the stables, Oakley could see Tally’s tall antlers peeking out from one of the stalls.   
He walked a bit faster towards the caribou, and asked the stablehand if she had arrived safely, and how hurt it was from the long ride. Oakley felt guilty for making her gallop for all those hours, he knew that he was at fault that his plans of leaving Arajear were at stake for being so impatient, and not letting himself or Tally rest for even a moment.   
  
“Ah, she seems to have had some kind of fracture in her ankle, and overall exhaustion from riding so long… she won't be in any condition to travel as far as i know. the doctor examined ‘er last night again and she doesn’t seem to be fit for any travellin just yet”    
Oakley’s ears drooped as he heard that Tally wouldn’t be fit to travel, he had hopes that she would be fine, or that he could at least be able to leave as soon as they got to the town    
“if you planned on leaving Ensa any time soon i would think that’s not going to be happening” the stable hand replied as they flipped through some of the papers they had in their hands, rubbing the back of their neck as they read Tally’s file    
“I mean, she isn’t in awful condition, but she’s still pretty tired and battered from that ride you put ‘er through” they added, trying to reassure Oakley as he looked over at his sleeping mount.   
She looked so peaceful, sleeping on the hay and wood chip bedding in the stables, with plenty of food and proper care from people who knew what they were doing. Oakley sighed and bent over the railing that separated the mount’s enclosure from the hallway, lightly petting Tally’s forehead as she slept.    
Tally slowly opened her bright black as when she felt Oakley’s soft paws brush against her fur, she nestled her ace against his hand, as if she was reassuring him that she was OK.    
Oakley continued to trace the caribou’s face fur and massaged her temples gently, he felt calmer knowing she was OK and that he hadn’t pushed her as far as he could have to have potentially killed her from fatigue.    
  
Oakley rose and turned towards the stablehand and asked    
“Is there any way you could tell me whenever she gets better? I-I really need to know when she’s fit to travel again”   
“Well, If you plan on leaving the town we can always send you a crow to wherever you’re at, but you would be hard to keep track of” the stablehand paused, his brow furrowed as he thought of a way to keep in contact with Oakley,    
“Ah! Here let me give you my name so you can write back in a few weeks and we’ll inform you of this girl’s state”   
The stablehand patted themselves down and looked through the pockets of their apron for something to write on “Wait just a sec” they added, they walked back to the stone counter to look for a small charcoal piece and some parchment   
“You can write to us and send it here, address it to me as well since I’m here most the time”   
They said, as they finished writing their name and the stable’s address on a small parchment piece. The handwriting was surprisingly neat, especially since the note was a bit rushed and done in the moment, it read ‘Anya Rook, Ensa Stables, Ensa-Arajear’    
“So your name’s Anya?”    
Oakley asked after reading the card, he extended his hand and added “My name’s Oakley, I’ll be writing back in a few days to see how she’s doing, it was a pleasure to meet you”    
Anya accepted Okley’s hand and shook it, putting the other one on top “Same goes to you, I’ll see the message gets to us as soon as you send it”    
Oakley smiled and blushed a little as Anya put their hands on his paw, they were cold to the touch but in a soothing way. He looked up at Anya and replied “I hope so… thank you for your help, I’ll write back as soon as i can'' Oakley turned away and walked towards the door, feeling Anya’s golden eyes follow him out   
“Thank you for using our services, we hope you consider coming again!” Anya called out with a warm smile. Okley looked back and nodded to Anya, closing the door behind him as he left the stable hands.   
  


Oakley closed the heavy wooden door behind him, feeling relieved and calm knowing that Tally was ok, at least that she was being taken care of, by people like Anya, who seemed sweet, caring and in love with their job.    
He took a deep breath and walked towards the town square, there were families and small children running around the plaza, a large stone fountain spewed small streams of water that sparkled under the summer sun. The clear blue water pooled in a large basin at the base of the fountain where kids and young dreamers wished for their desires as the fountain’s spirit feasted on the metal coins that were occasionally thrown in the fountain.    
_ “Spirits, haven’t seen those in a while” _ Oakley thought, as he sat on one of the benches in front of the fountain and watched the water trickle down the different tiers it had.   
  
Oakley noticed how no one paid real mind to the greedy little spirit stealing the town folks' coin that had been thrown in the fountain. He looked around the plaza from his bench, searching for a sign that someone might have noticed it, but he seemed to be the only one who could see it’s translucent body under the sun.  _ “must be from the fall”  _ he thought, he rubbed his forehead with his paw and stood up from the park’s bench, getting ready to keep looking for a way out of Ensa as soon as possible. 

Oakley went back to the inn he had stayed at for the past nights to try and gather his thoughts on what he would do after that point. He sat on one of the far tables in the dark corners of the bar. The booth chairs were cushioned with soft furs and covered with a delicate layer of cotton over them. Oakley scooted farther into the booth and sank into the soft furred seats as he called over a barmaid and ordered a drink, non alcoholic preferably, and watched as she walked towards the bar where the barman practiced his craft.    
He tapped his claws on the rustic wooden table waiting for his drink to arrive, His mind wandered as he thought of ways he could leave Ensa before anyone back home could track him down and figure out his plans, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself knowing that he failed at trying to prove himself to his family and the people of his father’s land. 

He was swimming through oceans of thoughts when he saw the barmaid approach with a bubbling tankard of what smelled of apple cider, she placed the heavy mug on the table with a smile and went back to her work. Oakley whispered a thank you and wrapped his hands around the warm tankard, he breathed in the cider’s sweet aroma as it wafted through the air letting it clear his mind and soothe his worries with every small sip he took from the bubbling cider in the mug.

Oakley left the inn as night fell on Ensa, decided to try and leave the confines of the before sunrise at the lastest. He didn't want to leave the small town the same way he left his home, and walking wasn't a viable option for travel. 

Small silver stars were scattered on the midnight blue sky, the gentle night breeze whispered and whistled in Oakley’s tall fox ears as he wandered through the town’s now empty streets.    
He wasn't particularly aware of his surroundings, be it to try and look for a ride out of Ensa or just try to spend the night doing something other than wallowing in his own thoughts, reminiscing on the disappearance of his father and the loss of his mother not so many years ago. Oakley watched the clear night sky light up as The gentle flickering of the lanterns lining the streets dimmed with the gentle winds blowing in the dark. He came to a halt as he arrived at the same bench he had sat on earlier that day, the only difference was that the spirit in the fountain seemed to have left it’s perch on the top tier. He found it strange that a spirit would change it’s living spot, especially when it lived as well as the fountain spirit was living; it seemed to have been pretty comfortable with the oblivious townsfolk throwing their silver and copper to the fountain, and the spirit apparently had what it needed in the tiny pool of water. 

Oakley bent down and sat on the darkened wooden bench facing the fountain, the once rushing water trickled down the fountain’s tiers like tiny waterfalls, the clear water sparkling under the light of the moon and forming pools that glittered like the night sky.    
Oakley sat and collected his thoughts on how he’d leave Ensa, he mumbled and muttered his thoughts to himself as the night went by. 

“I could try to hitch a ride with some of the travellers and merchants… but it would be too risky to do that”   
Oakley whispered to himself, he scratched the back of his head as he thought and figured out how to leave ensa, and not stay at the inn any longer, especially since he didn't know if his stay was going to cost him any extra after he had woken up. 

“I could try and ask Anya if any of the beasts are for sale”   
Oakley mumbled as he kept thinking,    
“Or you could hitch a ride with the merchant over there”   
Oakley’s hair stood on end, he jumped from his seat as he heard a deep disembodied voice reply to his muttering. He looked around the spot he sat at, startled and panicking as the voice kept talking    
“Buying a new steed would be WAY more expensive than doing some favors or giving a few gold coins to some traveller for a ride, it’s not an efficient investment in the long run”   
Oakley heard the voice move from the left to the right behind him, he felt a cold wind blow behind his neck, making him shudder as the cold sensation passed. He turned around facing a wall and called out to the voice “Why were you eavesdropping?” he asked, looking for the source of the voice around the area    
“It’s not eavesdropping if you were talking out loud” it replied, still hidden from Oakley’s view

“It most certainly is! That was a private conversation!” 

“With yourself?

Oakley stopped himself from arguing further with the voice, he was still shocked from the encounter with it and proceeded to ask the important questions to the entity 

“Who, and what, are you exactly?” he asked, still puzzled and looking around to find the source of the voice 

“I’m a spirit, what else could I be?” it replied, a slight chuckle in its voice. 

Oakley felt it move around again, this time facing the fountain, he turned around and asked it to show itself, his voice trembled as he thought of what the spirit might look like. Was it a huge eldritch monster coming to haunt him from the depths of hell, or just a harmless interpretation of a being’s soul that had been lost and looking for it’s vessel.    
Oakley took a deep breath and waited for the spirit to show itself, fidgeting and looking around for more people around the plaza, to be sure he had someone to call for help if anything went wrong.    
The spirit chuckled at Oakley’s request “You’ll just ask that right away? You have no shame do you?” it replied, making Oakley a bit more stressed as he thought of the repercussions of dealing with a spirit, even more so if it wasn’t just a wandering soul.   
The spirit didn’t object to Oakley’s request though, and in a quick flash of glowing green light it showed itself to Oakley. It’s “skin” was translucent, with a light green tint to it. It’s appearance seemed to be based on some kind of humanoid creature, but it’s attempts to look human failed when it came to it’s facial features. Most of the spirit’s face was covered by a mass of white hair that reached its feet and swirled around as the spirit floated a few inches above the ground. 

Oakley let out a sigh of relief as he saw the spirit wasn’t some gargantuan eldritch creature, but just a humanoid looking spirit. He did find it strange that it could keep such a clear corporeal form, he brushed that aside and kept asking it questions.    
“So, why are you here? Shouldn’t you be in some type of astral plane or something?” Oakley asked puzzled 

“Well, not an astral plane per se but I should be getting back to my vessel some time soon, it’ll be getting lonely if i dont go back” the spirit replied, talking as if having your soul ripped out from your body was a normal occurrence

“W-wait what? Vessel? You possessed someone?”

“It’s not possession if the vessel isn’t conscious, plus we have a symbiotic relationship with one another and it's quite pleasing” 

“What do you mean symbiotic relationship? It’s not beneficial to the host that you’re inside their body, in fact, it’s not beneficial to ANYONE” Oakley retorted, he was beginning to question himself and why he had let his curiosity get the best of him that night, he feared that the spirit might choose him as his next victim especially if it had already finished with it’s previous prey. Oakley put a hand on his belt, on the coin pouch where he kept all his money, as well as a small dagger he decided to bring with him. The spirit on the other hand wasn't paying much mind to Oakley’s fear, it knew anything he tried to do would be useless against it, since he wasn’t a corporeal being. 

“You’re really going with the ‘it’s against their will’ trope? C’mon there’s plenty more reasons why a spirit might be out of it’s grave” the spirit said, as if he was trying to reassure Oakley that he was safe with an unknown entity that might snap at any moment and at any given time 

“Like what? You were summoned by some crazy necromancer that wants to deal with the dead even if it’s not the season for it yet?” Oakley’s fear whittled away as he saw the game the spirit was playing, mocking him and joking about his very valid fears. 

“What? No, i'm not even the spirit of a dead person why would you think that” it replied, the small amount of it’s face it could show contorted in attempts to show disgust, it failed to do so and just looked plain stupid

“How am I supposed to know that?”

“I’m not a person” 

“But you are a being”

“Fair enough” 

Oakley sat back down and took a deep breath, calming himself down before addressing the spirit again. _ ‘I've never seen anything like it in the books I’ve read about the supernatural’ _ he thought, his mind wrapping around all the possibilities of what the spirit could be, and if it’s intentions were anything far from positive.    
Oakley sat back down on the bench and rubbed his forehead, fighting out what he should do when he got the idea to ask the spirit what it wanted, and why it had chosen to show itself to him when he could’ve just asked anyone in the town for whatever it needed 

“Well, the thing is” the spirit started explaining “Not everyone can see me, properly at least, in this form… turns out I lost my vessel and I don’t know how i ended up in this town out of all the places I could’ve appeared in”

_ “Oh, it’s just a lost spirit then”  _ Oakley thought, feeling relieved that the spirit was only lost and looking for the vessel it was inhabiting previously. “So you just need me to help you find your vessel?” Oakley asked the spirit   
“Essentially, yes, and I can help you get to wherever you’re going as well” it replied, stretching it’s ghostly hand out so they could settle the deal with a firm handshake 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all, im sorry this took a but long, i really needed to figure out some things in the story as it progressed . i gto a bit stuck around the end and didnt know how to progress so i decided to cut it off there until the next chapter!  
> The good parts starts in the next chapter i promise ehe :D
> 
> also, if any of y'all are intereste, I can post some references and small mini comics of character's interactions at the end of every chapter, or as individual chapters by themselves to mske uploeads a bit more frequent!  
> if you're interested in any of that be sure to let me know!  
> -moth


End file.
